


Erlebnisse

by MissMySims



Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, I dunno I'm still struggling to figure out what tags are good for this, My First Fanfic, Slow Burn, We don't Stan Micah in this house, ish?, this is my own thing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-04
Updated: 2019-05-04
Packaged: 2020-02-18 13:57:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18700990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissMySims/pseuds/MissMySims
Summary: Erlebnisse: the experiences, positive and negative, that we feel most deeply, and through which we truly live.Emmeline Vance, a woman from modern times, is sent back to 1899- and with absolutely no way to make it in her new environment, she must work with her gunslinger saviors and learn everything she can to survive these strange times.She might just learn to live, too.





	1. Prologue

******_Prologue- Crystal Rivers, 2019_ **

 

It was late at night in early May. The canal shimmered underneath the moonlight, reflecting the city lights back to the sky. On the waterfront, the front doors to Marrion Trading slid open, and a group of women stepped into the chilled night air, laughing and smiling as they all chatted. A few moments later the doors opened once more, this time a single woman walking out, long jet-black waves catching on the wind and blowing gently in the breeze. Bottle-green eyes lined with charcoal were glued to her phone as she typed away, the screen illuminating a pale face with glossed rosy lips and a soft smattering of barely-there freckles across the bridge of her nose. She reached up with a well-manicured hand and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, smiling faintly before tucking her phone into the pocket of her suit pants and fixing the strap of her purse more securely onto her shoulder. 

She turned the corner and headed towards the canal, and the parking garage on the other side of the drawbridge. It was a fifteen minute walk when the bridge was down, but the streets were brightly lit and surveyed by cameras on every building and street corner. It was why she didn’t mind the walk; that, and the fact that the river was always beautiful at night. 

 

That didn’t mean she didn’t still carry pepper spray in her purse. Just in case.

 

As she rounded the corner to follow the water to the bridge, she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. A little further down the road she needed was an old woman, dressed in faded and well-worn clothes and struggling with several travel bags. Emma worried her lip between her teeth for a moment before straightening her shoulders and walking along the pathway. “Excuse me, miss? Do you need some help?”

The woman looked up, her bright blue eyes warming instantly and nodded. “Oh, would you be a dear?” she asked. “My walker broke a few blocks from here, and I’ve been having trouble carrying all of these back to my car.”

Emma smiled and nodded, reaching down to grab one of the duffles and a backpack. She went to pull them up, but stumbled at the surprising weight in them. Regaining her balance, she tried once more, successfully pulling them onto her shoulders. “There we go,” she said chipperly. “Where’s your car parked?” 

“On the other side of the canal,” she answered. “The big blue one with all the pretty fish carvings on it.”

“What a coincidence; I’m parked there too.” Emma replied, continuing on her way. She made sure to go a little slower so the woman could keep up with her. “So, I gotta ask- what’s in these bags?”

The woman looked at her, blue eyes filled with mischief. “River rocks,” she said in a conspiratorial tone. At Emma’s mildly-stunned face, she let out a delighted cackle. “Oh, I’m just messing with you, my dear. No, it’s just a bunch of clothes and shoes. I shop at the Goodwill down the road, and take my findings to the women’s shelter down on Third and Quartz.”

And so the two continued to walk and talk, the trip taking longer than normal. Emma didn’t mind though; conversation came easily between the two. It was a nice and steady flow of whatever they decided to talk about. 

They were almost halfway across the bridge when the woman stopped suddenly, and Emma worried she’d been a little too hasty to cross. “Is everything alright?” she asked, concern lacing her voice.

The woman smiled at her, her eyes crinkling in the corners, and set down the bags on her arms. “Oh no dearie, everything’s fine,” she said, patting her worn coat and checking through the pockets. “I just wanted to give you something, as my way of saying thank you for your help. You’re a very sweet young girl.” Now, if only I could find it...aha!” She pulled her hand from the inside of her pocket and walked closer to the raven-haired girl, holding out her cupped palms to reveal the treasure resting inside. It was a beautiful pendant, a bright blue stone that seemed to almost glow from within the dark metal teardrop cage that held it. “When I was about your age, I met someone in need and helped them. In return, they gave me this special necklace. Now, I suppose it’s my turn to pass it along.”

Emmeline stared at the pendant for a moment before looking up and shaking her head. “That’s very kind of you ma’am, but-”

“I really do insist,” she cut off, hurrying behind the girl “I’m too old for such things, and you seem like the kind of girl who knows what to do with it. Now, would you be a dear and hold your hair up for me? I don’t want it to get caught in the clasp.”  _ do. _

Emma internally sighed but did as she was asked, crouching a little bit and holding her hair up off her neck. She felt the chain dance across the sides of her throat for a moment before settling, the pendant coming to rest just above the tops of her breasts. A moment later she let her hair drop back into place and stepped forward, turning to the woman. “Thank you, really,” she said. “It is lovely.”

The woman nodded, a large grin on her face. “It looks  _ wonderful  _ on you dearie,” she said. “Really lights up your eyes. Such a pretty green- like the wildflowers near my home.” 

Emma opened her mouth to reply, but jolted when the bridge beneath them began to move, parting down the middle to allow the cargo ships through the canal. “What the hell?” she said, looking down towards the bottom. The lights weren’t flashing, and the lane guard was still up. Maybe it was a malfunction? “We need to head back down to the bottom.”

“Oh, I’m afraid that isn’t possible, sweet girl.” The woman stepped closer, grabbing hold of Emmeline’s arm tightly. “We’re exactly where we’re supposed to be.”

Emma stared at her, bewildered, and tried to yank her arm away. “What are you doing? Let go of me!” She tried to step away, but the woman’s grip tightened, and she cried out from the feel of sharp nails digging into her arm through her blouse sleeve. 

“We  _ can’t _ ,” the woman insisted. By now the bridge was up most of the way, the two of them standing on a steep angle. The woman took a step towards Emma, and she backed up, her heel clipping the edge of the bridge. She looked over her shoulder to the dark water below in fright and back at the woman. “Wherever you end up going, I hope you live a happy life there.”

A single tear made its way down the young woman’s face.  _ “Please,” _ she whimpered.  _ “Don’t do this.” _

 

The woman gave a strong push, and Emma went over the edge, falling into the water below with a shriek.

 

She hit the water’s surface on her back, her head jerking backwards to hit the edge of the duffel bag hard as she sank. There was a moment of disorientation before a faint blue glow emanated from her chest, and she looked down to see the pendant suspended above her chest, becoming brighter and brighter with each passing moment. The water around her swirled, whipping her hair and clothes violently as it churned and frothed. She struggled to swim to the surface, but her head still throbbed from hitting it on whatever was in the duffle, and she couldn’t tell which way was up. It was becoming colder and colder, seeping into her bones and holding tight with a vice grip. Her lungs started to ache with the lack of fresh oxygen. She struggled out of the duffle and backpack straps and immediately felt lighter. She swam in the direction she prayed was up, trying to ignore the cold in favor of getting out of the water.

After a moment, her hands touched something solid in front of her, and she froze in shock at the feel of ice. The canal couldn’t have frozen over in just a minute; it was impossible! Nevertheless, there was a layer of ice above her, blocking her from much-needed air. She began beating at the ice, her lungs aching and spots appearing in her vision to black out what little light she could see through the ice. She nearly cried in relief at the sound of the ice cracking, and continued pounding away, ignoring the numbing in her fist. When the ice finally started to break, she pushed the small pieces up out of the way, bringing her head up to gasp at the air she needed. A little water splashed into her mouth, but it was a small price to pay for surviving. 

Emmeline took another moment to catch her breath before diving back down, continuing to hit the ice and break open a hole wide enough for her to crawl out of. It took several long minutes, but eventually she was able to squeeze herself out and onto the surface of the cracking ice, gasping and panting. After a moment, she forced herself to her knees, then her feet, and looked around. What she saw nearly short-circuited her brain.

It was a forest, decked in a thick layer of snow with more falling quickly with the blowing wind. The water behind her was a small pond connected to a river that disappeared into the trees going up the mountainside. Where was the city? Where was the old woman, the bridge, the canal?!  _ Was she **dead?!** _ Emma didn’t know; all she knew was she was cold, tired, and regretting her kindness.

Something heavy touched her shoulder, and she shrieked, jumping away and falling on her ass into a snow drift. Teeth chattering wildly, she looked up between her soaked locks at the dark figure before her. It looked like a man, wearing a ranger hat and a long coat. “P-p-p-p-please h-help m-m-me,” she stammered, her whole body trembling in the cold.


	2. Colter I

**_Colter, 1899_ **

  


Arthur, Javier, and John were riding back down the mountain along the riverside when Arthur spotted something unusual through the snowstorm. A little pond about thirty yards off to the side of the river had frozen over lightly, but something was breaking through the ice to climb out of the water below. Something that didn’t look like any animal he’d seen before. “What in the world…?” He steered his horse towards the pond, shotgun in his hand.

“Arthur! We gotta keep moving!” Javier called.

“You go on ahead!” he hollered back, dismounting and heading for the pond. “Hurry and get John back to camp; I’ll be right behind ya!” Javier grumbled something in Spanish, and then he and John were continuing along the river. Arthur approached the thing more slowly, shotgun raised to fire. And as the air between him and the creature cleared a little more, he realized with a start exactly what is what-  _ a person _ . A woman, going by the long hair and small body. But why the hell was she alone and dressed so strangely up here in the Grizzlies? 

Swearing, Arthur holstered his shotgun and approached quicker. “Miss, are you alright?” he called. She didn’t answer. She wasn’t even facing him; she was just looking around. When he got close enough, he gently placed his hand on her shoulder so as not to spook her.

It didn’t work. She shrieked, turning to face him and stumbling backwards to fall on her ass into a snow drift. She wrapped her arms around her torso, looking up at him through her soaked dark hair. She had bright green eyes and pale skin-though he couldn't tell if she was naturally pale, or just that cold. She must have realized she wasn’t facing off with an animal, because she relaxed a little bit. Her mouth was moving, but whatever noises she could get out were too quiet for him to hear against the wind. 

“Miss, I don’t mean you no harm. I’m only tryin’ to help,” he said, kneeling down. He pulled off his denim coat, shivering at the cold air. She had it worse though; she was soaked to the bone in ice-water and wearing practically  _ nothing _ . “C’mon, let’s get you up and covered.” He held out his hand, and she took it, whole body shaking violently as he pulled her off the ground. He realized she likely wouldn’t make it if she stayed in her clothes. Propriety be damned- a shamed woman was better than a dead one. “Miss, you ain’t gonna last long if you stay wet. Take those off, and put this on.”

The girl didn’t object, only started fumbling with the buttons on her strange blouse and pulling it away from her skin. Her pants and shoes quickly followed, leaving her in the most bizarre-looking undergarments Arthur had ever seen. But he could wonder about that later. He quickly swung his coat around her shoulders, buttoning up the front while she slid her arms into the sleeves. Once she was covered decently enough, he picked her up, heading back to his horse. “I’m gonna take you someplace safe, alright? You can warm up and get some food there.” He set her up in the front of the saddle, then hauled himself up behind her and pressed close to hopefully keep her warm long enough to get to camp.

“Th-th-thank you-u-u,” she stammered, teeth still chattering. “I d-d-don’t know w-w-what-”

“Don’t you worry ‘bout nothin’ right now,” he said. “Let’s just get you taken care of, then we can talk.” He snapped the reins, and the horse took off down the mountainside. The girl squeaked, and one of her hands gripped Arthur’s sleeve, the other holding onto the saddle horn so tightly he could see her fingernails digging into the juniper wood. 

They made it back to camp just as Javier and John were headed inside. “Just another minute and you’ll be all warmed up by the fire,” he promised, dismounting and pulling the stranger into his arms. He made his way inside quickly. “Javier, go get me some blankets!”

While the Mexican hurried to do so, Miss Grimshaw came over to look at the girl. “Jesus Christ, she’s nearly blue! And her hair is soaked- she’ll catch her death like that! Mister Morgan, set her by the fire, quickly!” Arthur did so, and the girl stammered out a thank you as Miss Grimshaw set to work bundling a blanket around her. “Tilly, brings me some clothes from my bag and my blue shawl. Karen, I need water, and a pot to heat it in. Go!” She turned to the girl, brushing strands of thick black hair out of her face. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”

“E-E-Emmeline,” she stammered quietly. “Emmeline V-Vance.”

Miss Grimshaw nodded. “Miss Vance, my name is Susan Grimshaw,” she said, patting her hand. “Now, let’s just get you warmed up as quick as we can, alright? You’re safe now.” She turned to Arthur and Javier, who was holding a blanket in his hands. “Thank you, Javier. Now, I’m gonna need all you boys to leave right quick while Miss Emmeline here gets cleaned up. Arthur, you go let Dutch know you’re back, and that you brought someone back with you. And get some food while it’s still hot-  _ both _ of you.”

Arthur nodded and left the cabin, Javier hot on his heels. “I’ll go talk to Dutch; you go on and get some rest,” the blond said. Javier nodded and headed for the stables, while Arthur rolled his shoulders and made his way into the cabin he shared with Dutch and Hosea.

  
  
  


Emmeline sat in front of the fire, staring absently into the flames and fidgeting with the hem of her borrowed skirt. It looked like something out of a tacky Old West movie, as did the heeled boots, the thick grey blouse, and that god-awful corset and bloomers that Miss Grimshaw had  _ insisted  _ she wear (the thing felt like a damn death trap, but after a bit she had learned to just deal with it). A lot of things were reminding her of those tacky movies, actually, and it was starting to make her nervous. Partially because these people all had guns or knives, but mostly, it was because she couldn’t come up with a reason as to how she got in that pond….well, not quite. She could think of  _ one _ way- but it was so outrageous, she dismissed it immediately.

“Miss Vance?”

The dark haired woman was jerked out of her thoughts, and she turned to look at the man who had saved her earlier. He stood just inside the door, his denim jacket dusted with a little bit of snow still- he must have just come in. “You’re the one who saved me,” she said. 

He nodded. “You look like you’re doin’ a lot better than you were a few hours ago,” he commented. “How ya feelin’?”

Emma shrugged, fiddling with the cuff of her sleeve. “All things considered, I could be a lot worse,” she admitted. “Thank you, by the way. I would probably be dead now if it wasn’t for you.” 

“I was just doin’ the right thing,” he said, rubbing at his neck. “Listen, I’ve got some fellers that need to speak with ya, if that’s alright with you. They’re just across the road. You mind steppin’ over with me?”

Emma nodded and rose to her feet, pulling the blanket tighter around her like a makeshift cloak. “Of course I don’t mind,” she said.

The man nodded and opened the door, gesturing for her to step in front of him. She did so quickly, shivering at the sharp wind. He closed the door behind him and the two headed across the road to a larger building. He pushed the door open and ushered her in, pushing it shut after himself. There was a table inside with four chairs, two of them occupied. “Miss Vance, this Dutch and Hosea. Dutch, Hosea- Miss Vance.” He pointed to each of the men as he labeled them.

Dutch nodded and gestured one of the empty chairs. “Take a seat, Miss Vance,” he said. She did so quickly. “Arthur here told us how he found you pulling yourself out of a pond a little ways up the river. I’m curious, why were you out there in the first place?”

Emma shrugged hopelessly. “I don’t know,” she replied. “The last thing I remember was I was in the city, being pushed off a bridge by a crazy old lady. Next thing I know, I’m in a pond in a snowstorm. It doesn’t snow in May- not in Crystal Rivers, anyways.”

“I can’t say I’ve ever heard of Crystal Rivers,” he said, stroking his mustache. “What state is that in?”

Emma balked. Crystal Rivers had been a major trading city ever since the early 1900s, and if they said they'd never heard of it... A thought forced its way into the forefront of her mind, and she paled at the implications. “It’s in Washington State, on the coast,” she said quietly. 

Dutch nodded and sat forward. “So what brings you all the way down here from Washington then?” he questioned. 

“I honestly  _ don't know _ ,” she insisted. The weight of the situation began to press in on her, her breathing becoming erratic. There was no room for panic while she had been worried about freezing to death; now, when she was in the clear and the threat of dying wasn't looming over her head, it was rising exponentially into a full-blown attack. “I don't know where I am, I don’t know how I got here, I don't know who any of you are-  _ I don't even know the fucking date!! _ I’m alone and scared in a place that I have never been before, surrounded by strangers with guns, and-” 

A hand settled on her shoulder; not forceful, but firm and grounding. She took in a shuddering breath and slumped forward, pressing her hands to her face and closing her eyes. “You’ve had a long day, Miss Vance,” Hosea said calmly. “Why don't you go on and get some rest, and we can try and talk again tomorrow. Arthur, go and get her settled with the women, will you?”

The gunslinger nodded and stepped forward. “Come on Miss Vance,” he said quietly, helping the raven-haired woman to her feet. “Let’s go get you settled in for the night.” She nodded mutely, following him out into the snow once more.

They crossed back to the other building, where he left her by the door and approached a woman with light brown hair curled over her shoulder. They talked in hushed words for a minute, before she walked over and smiled sweetly. “Hi there. You’re Emmeline, right? I’m Mary-Beth; you’ll be bunking with me and the other girls.” She held her hand out, nodding her head towards the array of bedrolls in the corner. “You’ve had a rough go of it today; you can use my roll to get some shuteye tonight. We’ll get you one when we get a chance, okay?”

Emma nodded and took the offered hand, stepping towards the fire and the man laying down. She paused and looked back at Arthur just as he opened the door to head back out “Thank you, Mister Morgan,” she said quietly. 

The tall man nodded at her. “You get some rest now, Miss Vance,” he said. He stepped out into the snow once more, the door clicking shut behind him as he left her in the cabin with the rest of the women. 

Mary-Beth showed her how to set up the bedroll, then gave her another blanket to lay over the one she'd kept wrapped around herself. “You get some shuteye now,” she said soothingly. “I’ll wake you for breakfast.” She rose and walked over to another woman, this one with blond hair, and the two sat together and talked quietly between themselves. 

Emma turned over on the bedroll, curling into a ball and bundling the blankets around her as she stared at the fireplace. Today had been far too long and strange for anything more than sleep at this point. Closing her eyes, she let her mind wander away, sleep taking over her body in minutes.

\--------

Arthur arrived back at his room, brushing the snow from his shoulders and placing his hat on the dresser. He ran a hand through his hair and scowled as he sat down at the edge of his bed. After he had left her with Mary-Beth, the enforcer had gone back to Dutch’s cabin to hear Dutch and Hosea had been talking about the girl-  _ Miss Vance _ , his brain supplied -and neither of them could seem to agree on whether or not she should stay. Dutch did have a valid point in that they didn’t know where she came from, but  _ damnit  _ if she didn’t obviously need their help!

A knock on the door sounded, and he looked up as Hosea came in. “You alright there son?” he asked, stomping the snow off of his boots and walked over. 

“Yeah, I’m alright,” Arthur responded. “What’re you doin’ over here?”

“Well, you left in a big huff before I could finish saying what I wanted,” the older man said. “Here, scoot over.” The blond did so, and Hosea took a seat to his right. “Now, you definitely did a good thing bringing her back with you, Arthur, I won’t deny that. And she clearly has some kind of amnesia from whatever happened to her. But Dutch is right in saying we should be wary of her. For all we know, she  _ could _ be faking it, and she’s here to kill us all in our sleep. Do you want to take that chance with the rest of the gang? With the girls? With  _ Jack?” _ Hosea sighed and shook his head. “I talked Dutch into giving her a chance. She’ll help around camp- do what she can. When we get off this damn mountain, we’ll go from there.” He sighed. “That poor thing, stuck with a bunch of crazy people like us, and no clue where she is. Hopefully we can help her, or find someone who can. But that can wait; right now, you should get some rest. It’s been a hell of a day for you, son.” Hosea patted Arthur’s shoulder, rising and popping his back with a wince and a cough. “See you in the morning, Arthur.”

Arthur nodded. “Sleep tight old man,” he called with a chuckle. The door shut behind Hosea, and he sighed, lying down on his bed and closing his eyes.  _ ‘Hopefully some sleep’ll help me figure this whole mess out tomorrow morning.’ _

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments make my day!


End file.
